Ther Arkansas Traveler I Addie Jones
When Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced the state of Arkansas had purchased 815 acres near Charleston to build a 3,000-bed prison facility, resident Jenna Ward found out on Facebook.
Ward, a Charleston native and sophomore at the University of Central Arkansas, said finding out about something this important through social media felt wrong and dystopian.
This prison, announced on Oct. 31, is aimed at addressing the state’s prison bed shortage and providing nearly 800 jobs. The state has received significant local opposition over the lack of community input and ineffectiveness in addressing deep-rooted incarceration issues.
Sarah Moore, co-founder and executive director for the Arkansas Justice Reform Coalition (AJRC), said Arkansas has a long history of mass incarceration that creates harm and deteriorates human beings without preparing them for life after prison.
“The Charleston prison is an example of Arkansas going back to that really tired solution,” Moore said. “There has not been public input and feedback to work on what the solution is.”
Local officials and state representatives were only given information a day or two before the public announcement. This short time frame did not allow time to determine local impacts and the financial burden of small-town residents supporting the volume of another small town moving in.
On Nov. 7, Franklin County residents packed a town hall, asking for a delay in approving the land for the prison, but were met with a resounding “No” from Arkansas Board of Corrections member Benny Magness.
The day after, Sanders released a statement supporting the investment in the Arkansas prison system.
“I am committed to working with community members throughout the prison construction process as we invest hundreds of millions of dollars in Franklin County and create hundreds of recession-proof, good-paying jobs,” the statement read.
The proposed prison is located around 8 miles from UA alum Madison Price’s childhood home. She said she is deeply concerned over the lack of government transparency.
“Decisions of this magnitude should involve open communication and input from the community,” Price said, “yet it feels as though we have been left in the dark. We deserve clear answers from the Huckabee Sanders administration about the potential impacts on our livelihoods, but so far, transparency has been sorely lacking.”
Ward said many of her friends live in the Vesta/Mill Creek Mountain area – where the prison will be located – and she has fond memories of summers spent driving around its backroads.
“For those who call it home,” Ward said, “it’s more than just a place, it’s a sanctuary away from the rest of the world. I’ve seen how much it means to my community, and it’s clear why they’re so protective of it. The thought of a prison being built on Mill Creek Mountain feels like an intrusion into a place I thought was safe and peaceful.”
The state spent $2.95 million taxpayer dollars to purchase the property. An AJRC report shared it will cost an estimated $1 billion in taxpayer dollars to build the prison and an additional $76.8 million to maintain the facility each year. Currently, the state only has $405 million set aside to offset the costs.
Research shows property values decrease over time in proximity to prisons and jails; this prison site is less than 10 miles from Charleston Elementary School and will put a strain on the local business and sheriff’s office labor force, likely increasing local property taxes.
The AJRC has had issues with prison expansion in the past. In June, the coalition filed a lawsuit against Washington County for misusing federal COVID-19 funds, diverting the money from nonprofits to jail expansion.
Nonprofit decARcerate is leading a coalition of stakeholders fighting back against the expansion and empowering local leadership. They were one of 17 organizations to sign a letter opposing the prison’s construction, headed by executive director Zachary Crow, who called the project a “political ploy” and “unsustainable and oppressive.”
Another decARcerate employee, Laura Nicks, agreed with the prison being reductive. She was sentenced as a juvenile in 1985 and incarcerated for 32 years before being released in 2017. Since then, she has worked for the nonprofit as a direct services manager.
“I don’t understand why we’re spending on additional beds and building a new prison when we could remove these people from the prison system and rehabilitate them,” Nicks said. “The problem is, the people that are the least threat to society are the ones they aren’t investing in.”
Nicks attended the Nov. 7 town hall and said the community seems to feel like their voices are not being heard. This tension could create a negative relationship between staff and the people incarcerated, she said.
Looking forward, Moore said the state should put more money into housing, infrastructure, educational, vocational and mental health services.
For concerned Arkansans, Moore suggested following a variety of news sources to stay educated. Beyond that, she encouraged putting your voice into the conversation by reaching out to the governor’s office, the Board of Corrections and state legislators to let them know your viewpoint.
“The fact they felt the need to hide and be so secretive means their intentions aren’t for doing the right thing,” Nicks said.